Welcome to the Piano World Piano ForumsOver 2 million posts about pianos, digital pianos, and all types of keyboard instruments
Join the World's Largest Community of Piano Lovers
(it's free)
It's Fun to Play the Piano ... Please Pass It On!

Hi, I was having piano lesson a few years ago. I finished learning the Czerny Op 599; Frist Lesson in Bach; and most of the Sonatina Album (those from the Schirmer's library).But because of going aboard for further study and partly for financial reason, I suspended my study. Now I just bought an affordable digital piano and planned to self learn. What other books do you suggest me to start study? I heard that Hanon's study is good, and I also heard that Czerny Op. 139, 299 are good but I wonder if it is the right time to start those books.And are there any similar books like the First Lesson in Bach?Any other thing I should try? And I actually like the Piano Sonata 3rd movement a lot but I wonder if that would be too quick for me to start?Thanks.

First of all, I'd like to provide the disclaimer that [most] of us here are not teachers (and the few that are certainly have not worked specifically with you) and would like to suggest that you maybe save up a little money for a few lessons with a qualified teacher that could help determine both where you are now and a path that you could take in self-study for a few years.

Hanon and Czerny (and any other) exercises can be great, but I don't know that I'd recommend trying them without a teacher's instruction to make sure that you're doing them right and not practicing with poor technique. If you've built a solid foundation over several years' study, then you might be alright. Always practicing your 24 scales, arpeggios, and their inversions, however, is rarely a bad thing (use proper fingerings!).

As for repertoire, did you like the Bach that you played? If so, great! JS Bach is probably the single most valuable composer to familiarize with in improving at the keyboard (touch, articulation, fingering, dynamics, polyphonic playing). First Lessons in Bach is a two-book series (Schirmer does have one book that merges the two) - did you play through both books (teachers commonly recommend completing at least all of the minuets before possibly moving on)? The next logical progression for Bach are his 18 little prelude and fugues, two-part inventions, and sinfonias.

I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't suggest a varied and balanced diet of all kinds of pieces from different musical eras (Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Twentieth-Century). For this reason, repertoire collection series are great. Succeeding With the Masters (editor Helen Marlais) is well-reviewed by teachers for just this purpose (see more suggestions here: http://www.pianoworld.com/forum/ubbthrea...tml#Post2014409).

edit: I'm assuming you're talking about Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata mvt. 3. While not his most difficult sonata, it's also not his most approachable and it would be difficult to learn on one's own with but just a few years experience. The good thing is Beethoven wrote 34 other multi-movement sonatas (or 31 depending on if you're old-school) as well as a list of sonatinas and many other beautiful works that may be more approachable (graded list of Beethoven sonatas: http://www.pianoworld.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/503537/3.html#Post1930944)

Thanks very much for the detailed explanation. I will look into the repertoire books you introduced. Probably I would buy it soon from Amazon.And concerning the Czerny, I found so many studies from him. Which one would be the natural continuation after Op. 599? e.g. the Op. 139?Thanks.

Thanks very much for the detailed explanation. I will look into the repertoire books you introduced. Probably I would buy it soon from Amazon.And concerning the Czerny, I found so many studies from him. Which one would be the natural continuation after Op. 599? e.g. the Op. 139?Thanks.

You might want to post this question on the teacher's forum for advice. The thing you should know about "studies" and "exercises" is that while they may be useful, they may also only be useful for fairly specific things which may or may not be relevant to pieces of music that you're spending time working on or towards. As a result, time spent on them could be a waste of time in this respect (I'm not saying that they are as I'm not too familiar with Czerny's studies and/or how they may assist in specific playing/technique), but I bring this up to shine light on the importance of the guidance of an experienced teacher, especially regarding things like these.

Thanks! I'm aware of that. The author of "The fundamental of Piano Practice" here actually totally discourage that: http://www.pianofundamentals.comI didn't finish his book but I'll take time to go through that. In light of that and because I really like the moonlight sonata 3rd movement I'm actually trying that out although I know that's not the "natural continuation" of what I was learning.Thanks again!